[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 156 (Tuesday, August 17, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46007-46008]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-17563]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0032427; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: Alabama Department of 
Transportation, Montgomery, AL

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDoT) has completed 
an inventory of human remains, in consultation with the appropriate 
Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that 
there is no cultural affiliation between the human remains and any 
present-day Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. 
Representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not 
identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of 
these human remains should submit a written request to the Alabama 
Department of Transportation. If no additional requestors come forward, 
transfer of control of the human remains to the Indian Tribes or Native 
Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

DATES: Representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian 
organization not identified in this notice that wish to request 
transfer of control of these human remains should submit a written 
request with information in support of the request to the Alabama 
Department of Transportation at the address in this notice by September 
16, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William B. Turner, Alabama Department 
of Transportation, 1409 Coliseum Boulevard, Montgomery, AL 36110, 
telephone (334) 242-6144, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is here given in accordance with the 
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 
U.S.C. 3003, of the completion of an inventory of human remains under 
the control of the Alabama Department of Transportation, Montgomery, 
AL. The human remains were removed from the Mount Hope Site (1La601), 
Lawrence County, AL.
    This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's 
administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003(d)(3) and 
43 CFR 10.11(d). The determinations in this notice are the sole 
responsibility of the museum, institution, or Federal agency that has 
control of the Native American human remains. The National Park Service 
is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.

Consultation

    A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by the 
University of Alabama and the Alabama Department of Transportation 
professional staff in consultation with representatives of the Cherokee 
Nation; Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians; The Chickasaw Nation; and the 
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma (hereafter 
referred to as ``The Tribes''). [During a 6 February 2020 conference 
call that included representatives from The Tribes and ALDoT, it was 
agreed that Chickasaw Nation would take the lead and that ALDoT could 
proceed with a Notice of Inventory Completion for the human remains 
from 1La601].

History and Description of the Remains

    During Phase III Data Recovery fieldwork in the Winter of 1994-
1995, human remains representing, at minimum, one individual were 
removed from the Mount Hope Site (1La601) in Lawrence County, AL. Given 
difficult field conditions and the fragmentary nature of the human 
remains, accurate identification of the remains occurred only during 
subsequent laboratory work conducted at the University of Alabama 
Laboratory of Human Osteology. Based on the size and general features 
of the cranial fragments, the remains were determined to belong to a 
single adult who had been cremated. Given the fragmentary nature of the 
human remains and lack of identifying landmarks, specific age, sex, 
pathology, or trauma could not be determined. A total of 83 fragments 
was identified, 23 cranial and 60 post cranial. Recognizable cranial 
fragments include two frontal, two parietal, two mandible, and six 
temporal fragments. Limited evidence suggests that the post cranial 
fragments could be from upper limb bones. No known individual was 
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.

Determinations Made by the Alabama Department of Transportation

    Officials of the Alabama Department of Transportation have 
determined that:
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice are Native American, based on their cremated state and 
their recovery from a Pre-European Contact archeological site 
containing Paleoindian, Early Archaic, Middle Archaic, Late Archaic, 
and Woodland components. Given the depth of recovery, the human remains 
are to be associated with the most intensive period of site usage, 
which has been radiocarbon dated to around 7240 years B.P.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice represent the physical remains of one individual of 
Native American ancestry.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), a relationship of shared 
group identity cannot be reasonably traced between the Native American 
human remains and any present-day Indian Tribe.
     According to final judgments of the Indian Claims 
Commission or the Court of Federal Claims, the land from which the 
Native American human remains were removed is the aboriginal land of 
The Tribes.
     Treaties, Acts of Congress, or Executive Orders, indicate 
that the land

[[Page 46008]]

from which the Native American human remains were removed is the 
aboriginal land of The Tribes.
     Pursuant to 43 CFR 10.11(c)(1), the disposition of the 
human remains may be to The Tribes.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization 
not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control 
of these human remains should submit a written request with information 
in support of the request to the Alabama Department of Transportation, 
1409 Coliseum Boulevard, Montgomery, AL 36110, telephone (334) 242-
6144, email [email protected], by September 16, 2021. After that 
date, if no additional requestors have come forward, transfer of 
control of the human remains to The Tribes may proceed.
    The Alabama Department of Transportation is responsible for 
notifying The Tribes that this notice has been published.

    Dated: August 4, 2021.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2021-17563 Filed 8-16-21; 8:45 am]
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